Chapter 20
Falcon
We took the ladies back to our rooms and I removed the wrap from Daisy’s ankle. It was looking better, so we left it off, though she took some more Ibuprofen. She went to the bathroom and changed alone since she was able to walk unassisted.
She came back out, and my mouth watered. The new jeans came with a huge tear in the knee and she chose one of the band tees. Paired with the black boots I grabbed for her, she made the perfect biker chick. Not a bunny, but someone who could ride on the back of my bike. Even though she’d been there before, that was out of necessity. But I didn’t regret it. And it wouldn’t be the last time.
“What now?” she asked.
I walked over to her and took in her pretty face. Her big blue eyes looked up at me. She had swiped a little mascara on her lashes, and her lips were shiny. All I could think of was that shine rubbing off on my cock. But I already made up my mind; she had to decide when she was ready to accept that she was mine.
I had to restrain myself from running my hands over her soft, dark hair. “We’ll go downstairs, have some drinks, you’ll meet everyone, then we sleep until heading to the shop tomorrow.”
She held her head up high as we headed down, though she seemed tense. My hand went to the small of her back, but she didn’t move away. She seemed to slow a little, like she welcomed the touch.
The music got louder as we got closer, and we finally made it down the stairs into the club. She stopped and looked around. She had worked in strip clubs, but I wasn’t sure what she’d think about this.
Some of the bunnies were already topless, taking body shots off each other. Squatch was getting a blow job in the corner and some of the bunnies were dancing around, taking their clothes off.
When she leaned in closer, I was shocked at what she asked. “Wait, why are there guys in different cuts here?”
I put my arm over her shoulder and nudged her to walk with me. Leaning down so she could hear me over the music I told her, “We have some alliances with other clubs and those guys,” I said as I pointed to a table in a different corner, “are nomads. Part of DE but not any chapter.”
“Oh, I thought this was like a member’s only thing here.”
I kept walking us toward a table where I spotted Eagle, Lacy, Hawk, and Butch. “We welcome friends. It’s not a golf club.”
She smirked and sat when I pulled up a chair for her. Lacy squealed and hugged her neck. I was feeling pretty good about the day but that was shot to shit when a bottle was slammed down in front of me.
Looking over my shoulder, I ground my teeth and grabbed Sugar’s wrist before she stomped off. “Hey, calm the fuck down. And if you bring me a beer, you bring her one, too?”
Sugar yanked her wrist away and Daisy turned to look. “What’s her deal?”
Eagle laughed. “She’s just that way. Don’t worry, they were never a thing.”
She turned back. “Oh, I’m not worried about that. Just wondering if I need to watch my back.”
Jeannie walked over with another beer. “Hey, I’m Jeannie. Don’t worry about her. She has a stick in her ass all the time.”
Daisy smiled at Jeannie and grabbed a chair, dragging it over. “Have a seat. I like you.”
The rest of the night was fun; Daisy and Lacy fit in great. The bunnies were cool, except for Sugar, and the guys were all respectful. They knew when they saw me with my arm around her, she was with me, at least for the night. They’d ask before they tried anything.
“Hey, man,” a deep voice said from behind me.
Hawk held his bottle up. “Hey, Jackal. Thanks for swinging by. ”
Jackal was a nomad, but he’d been coming around for years. He was closer to Raven’s age and was someone you’d be lucky to have at your side in a fight. His dark hair was always slicked back into a ponytail, and arms were like a wrestler’s. He was getting a little silver in his beard, but he was holding up well for his age.
I stood up and shook his hand. “How the fuck have you been?”
“I was good ‘til I heard. Fucked up about your pops, Hawk.”
Hawk tipped his head. “I appreciate it. You coming this weekend?”
“Wouldn’t miss it. If there’s anything I can do, let me know. I’ll be in the area at least a few weeks.”
Hawk stood up and Eagle followed. He grabbed Jackal’s shoulder. “Why don’t you join us in the back? I’m glad you came.”
I leaned down into Daisy’s ear. “I’ll be right back. You good?”
She was definitely buzzed and seemed to be having a good time. “I’m great. I’ll be fine.”
A prospect was at the bar, so I stopped. “Hey, if any man tries to touch her, break his arm then come get me.”
“You bet.”
“And you make sure he doesn’t get killed,” I said to a newer member that just was patched in a few months back.
He smacked the prospect on the back and held his beer up. “We gotcha, boss. ”
I followed Rooster into the room where we all took a seat. Hawk was already talking to Jackal about what happened. “We’ve been all over town but are coming up dry.”
Jackal’s tattooed neck seemed to throb. “That’s fucked. I can keep an eye out, ask around. Was there anything going on recently? I thought it was quiet ‘round here.”
Hawk let out a defeated sigh. “Unless pops wasn’t telling me something, nothing was up. No rival clubs, no partnerships that went sour, nothing.”
“Could it have been random?” Jackal asked.
“What Ma described was no accident. I hate to admit we got no leads, but if you hear anything, hit me up.”
“You got it. Anything for Raven and the Enforcers.” He stood up then scratched his beard. “I’ll try to find ya something. Your pops and I go way back.”
Jackal left the room, but we stayed. Hawk stood still for a few beats then slammed his hand down on the table. “Goddammit!”
The music outside was loud enough that nobody heard that. Hawk started pacing while we waited and watched. He finally stopped and crossed his arms. “I know it’s been a shakeup here, but we need answers. If there is a rival out there we need to deal with them. We have allies, manpower, all of it. We just don’t know where the fuck to send it.”
“Do we know if everyone is our ally?” I asked.
Hawk stopped pacing. “You think we got a traitor?”
I shrugged. “I think we need to entertain all options. The fact is, if they targeted Raven, they may not be done.” Scanning the room, I watched as that sank in. Their steely gazes changed to fiery, and everyone’s jaw clenched.
Hawk’s chest puffed out and he lifted his chin. “For the time being, church won’t go past the people in this room. And any cleanup that needs to be done, we do it. And no patch-ins until this is settled.”
Eagle chimed in. “Should we hold off on the party this weekend?”
Hawk shook his head. “No. If it is someone from the inside, we don’t need to tip them off with any sudden changes. That’ll only make them suspicious. Plus, Pops deserves his proper send-off. But we all need to be watching everyone who shows up. If you notice anything off at all, everyone in this room right now needs to know immediately.”
We all stood but watched Hawk as the wheels turned in his head. His arms dropped to his sides, but his hands tightened into fists before he relaxed again. “This is war, brothers. We’ll only win if we stay controlled, stay vigilant, stay tight. This is for us just as much as it’s for Pops, for Raven. I hope Falcon’s wrong, but if not, we have to be prepared to do what’s necessary to protect the club.”
We all banged our fists on the table and a wave of adrenaline pulsed through my veins. Then Hawk said, “Now let’s go back out there and party.”